Perestroika in Paris

By: Jane Smiley

Narrated by: Suzanne Toren

Length: 8 hrs and 20 mins

Publisher's Summary

From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of A Thousand Acres and the New York Times best-selling Last Hundred Years Trilogy, a captivating, brilliantly imaginative story of three extraordinary animals - and a young boy - whose lives intersect in Paris.

Paras, short for "Perestroika", is a spirited racehorse at a racetrack west of Paris. One afternoon at dusk, she finds the door of her stall open and - she's a curious filly - wanders all the way to the City of Light. She's dazzled and often mystified by the sights, sounds, and smells around her, but she isn't afraid. Soon she meets an elegant dog, a German shorthair pointer named Frida, who knows how to get by without attracting the attention of suspicious Parisians. 

Paras and Frida coexist for a time in the city's lush green spaces, nourished by Frida's strategic trips to the vegetable market. They keep company with two irrepressible ducks and an opinionated raven. But then Paras meets a human boy, Etienne, and discovers a new, otherworldly part of Paris: the ivy-walled house where the boy and his nearly 100-year-old great-grandmother live in seclusion. As the cold weather and Christmas near, the unlikeliest of friendships bloom. But how long can a runaway horse stay undiscovered in Paris? How long can a boy keep her hidden and all to himself? 

Jane Smiley's beguiling new novel is itself an adventure that celebrates curiosity, ingenuity, and the desire of all creatures for true love and freedom.

©2020 Jane Smiley (P)2020 Recorded Books

C’est Si Bon

“Perestroika in Paris” is a delightful little soufflé of a novel. A book about talking animals could be a bit treacly, but this was just right — airy, but not too sweet. I was just about to write, “How could you not like a light novel set in Paris?” But then I remembered I’d just finished a Paris potboiler that bubbled with the worst chick lit tropes imaginable. So, it’s possible to hate a book set in Paris, but not this one. “Perestroika” will cleanse your palate of the bitterness of 2020.

A lovely book

This was just delightful. The story, narration, beginning to end, all of it was perfect. I can't recommend it enough. It lifted my spirits and warmed my heart.

This most entirely charming tale ever

I love dogs, horses, children, and Paris and throw in an adorable rat and two mallards and a raven and it is perfection.. an adult fairy tale

Children’s story

Several early amazon reviews said it was a good book for young and old alike. This is blatantly wrong! Don’t use a credit!

Charming!

This is a very sweet story, just what I needed at the end of a not-very-sweet year.

Whimsical and sweet

A whimsical and sweet fairytale with a great cast of wide and varied characters, each with their own story to tell.

If you like animals, this is a fun book

The narrator was very good. I really enjoy Jane Smiley's books. Nice escape for the mind.

A wonderful fable

After all the stressors in a year of Covid, this story was the perfect tonic.The reader has a wonderful voice and no one writes about horses better than Jane Smiley.

Delightful

A delightful fable, totally removed from anything current. Kids and adults will enjoy. Yet another genre for Smiley.

A perfect Christmas tale (tail)

A wonderful, beautifully written and read, story of loyalty and love, for all the family.